Small step for commuter rail eyed

Passenger rail service between Scranton and New York could clear a major hurdle next week, bringing the dream of a commuter train closer to reality.

HOWARD FRANK

Passenger rail service between Scranton and New York could clear a major hurdle next week, bringing the dream of a commuter train closer to reality.

The North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority will vote on a resolution Wednesday to restore service along a 7.3-mile stretch between Port Morris and Andover Township. The proposal, at a cost of $36.6 million, includes a passenger station in Andover.

That's an important step in restoring service throughout a 28-mile stretch of the route known as the Lackawanna Cutoff.

Rail service between Scranton and New York is mostly in place. The problem is the stretch between Port Morris, N.J., and the Delaware Water Gap. The tracks along the so-called Lackawanna Cutoff were torn out years ago, and the land sold off.

Pennsylvania and New Jersey have acquired those properties, but the tracks and stations still need to be built.

The estimated cost of restoring the entire Lackawanna Cutoff project, at $551 million, is a staggering amount. But NJ Transit identified a locally preferred alternative for a minimum operable segment. That's a fancy way of saying NJ Transit wants to try to rebuild the track piecemeal, station by station.

"They adopted a different approach, because $551 million is an insurmountable problem," according to Norm Ressler, of the Penn Jersey Rail Coalition. "On the other hand, if they start doing it in segments, its easier to get little bits of money than large chunks of money."

The vote by North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority is a necessary step in the process. The agency gives the public a regional voice in how transportation money is spent, according to Public Affairs Manager David Behrend. Projects to be funded must be put into the transportation plan. A vote for the resolution means New Jersey is appropriating the funding to start putting the rail back.

"Once the a locally preferred alternative is approved, it gets put in their plan, and New Jersey Transit is ready to move forward. To get the federal funding, that needs to be recognized," Behrend said.

He was also optimistic. "Our board is poised to approve this next week," he said.

Ressler believes it will take a little more than three years to get the Andover station running. But as far as the other 21 miles, that's almost anybody's guess.

"The tunnel in New York is sucking up all the money," Ressler said. A new rail tunnel between New York and New Jersey is under construction, and is expected to be completed by 2016 or 2017. It has a $7 billion price tag. "That's why we don't have any money for the cutoff," he said.

Local officials greeted the news with joy.

"It's a very positive development," Pennsylvania North East Regional Railroad Authority Chief Operating Officer Larry Malski said. "This is the final link — the key is getting the final 28 miles rebuilt."

According to Malski, the key is future funding. "We still have to build stations in Pennsylvania and get the all the engineering finished and state funding lined up. But nothing is going to happen until the rail goes up in the cutoff," he said.